We're Sectional Bound Once Again!

Well, we squeaked out another one. We beat Claremont 3-2 today so we're going to Sectionals in August. Even though I lost today with Steve Mak, Lawrence and Dave really came through for the team by clinching the win via a 3rd super-tie-breaker. Above is out team photo, minus a couple of players (Andy Neff, Ernie Ong).

We will be competing at Los Caballeros Tennis Center in Orange County on the weekend of 8/17-8/19. This is an added bonus since Lan's Ladies 3.5 team (read previous post) are also going to the Sectionals on the same weekend. This is going to be fun and exciting.

The Apple iPhone arrives today!

Apple computers are definitely the master of hype. I should learn a thing or two and apply to my own business marketing strategy. Steve Job introduced the iPhone back in January. The Keynote address blew Bill Gate's keynote at the CES away. It was no coincidence that the 2 Keynotes were presented at the same time at 2 different cities... Las Vegas, and San Francisco. Steve Job's presentation was so smooth that he got everyone convinced that everyone needs an iPhone and all 5,000 attendees wants to haul out and get the damn thing right away!

They had people lining up in front of the NYC 5th Avenue store starting this past Monday June 25th. They then closed the store from 2-6PM today to prepare for the launch. The people got anzy right around 6PM and the crowd started the chant in counting down to 6PM. The press were swarming outside the store as well to catch a glimpse of the launching of the iPhone. 6PM rolls around and the guests who lined up were greeted with High-Fives and applause.

These people just spent $1300 for 2 phones (because each person is allow to buy no more than 2 phones, and these people were running out of the store smiling. That's amazing! $1300 for 2 mobile phones and they were estactic and thought they were the luckiest people in the world!

People are camping on the Streets for the iPhone

I just heard in the news that there are people already lining up for the iPhone. It's not for another 4 days!!

Today is Fanny & Sian's One Year Wedding Anniversary

Here's a slideshow of their wedding album. The music is by Celine Dion's Colour of my Heart. It happens to be Sian's favorite singer and he used this song to propose to Fanny, and it as their theme song at their wedding. Enjoy.

Spencer Critchfield’s Eagle Court of Honor

I had the pleasure of photographing an Eagle Court of Honor this afternoon. It's a rare event because statistically only 2% of all Boy Scouts attain the highest rank of Eagle Scout.

Spencer Critchfield is a special young man. He's funny, likeable by everyone, young and old. He exemplifies the true meaning of Scouting.

There were so many who made a brief speech to describe Spencer. I was in awe with so many people, one after another spoke so highly and positively of him.

His Mom, Chris is such a energetic and happy lady. It's no wonder that Spencer attained Eagle rank. It's definitely with the support of his Mom, and various members of his family. Spencer is definitely a blessed young man to be surrounded by so many who love him.

Toward the end of Spencer's thank you speech, he got a little teary eye as he thanked everyone in the room because they have affected him in a positive way throughout his youth and through his journey in Scouting.

And if you read my previous blog entry (March 3, 2006), I've been a Boy Scout Leader for the past 17 years. Naturally, I showed to this event with my Boy Scout uniform and I blended into the event perfectly.

Spencer, Congratulations on your Eagle Rank. It was a tough journey, but you deserve it. And Chris, you did a magnificent job supporting Spencer throughout his Scouting career. Congratulations to you both.

Bomb Threat at SAG, 5757 Wilshire

There was a bomb threat at the street level of 5757 Wilshire Blvd today at around 2PM. Someone found a mysterious package in from of "Organic to Go" and reported to the authorities. I went for a late lunch and when I stepped into the lobby, I was stopped and escorted by the police to move along. Fortunately, I was heading to "Ralph's" to get a quick bite. When I returned to the office, I was not allowed to get back in!. They were still investigating the situation.

I managed to walk all the way around and up the stairs to the 8th floor. I was concerned that my laptop was still on my desk. I need to have it with me due to the content of the hard drive which contains many of my recent wedding images that I've been working on. I would hate to loose it all and have to start over again.

After I retrieved my laptop and I gazed out the window and saw the bomb squad van. That's when I realize this is for real and the threat seems to be real. Strangely, we have not gotten the official word to leave to building. We were still waiting for upper management to give the go ahead to vacate the building. I realized how absurd this was because upper management have all left the building. I thought to myself... why are we still here. We should leave when we have the chance. I can imaging my Dad muttering to himself over what's left of my dead corpse that my son is such an idiot... following orders blindly. I wish he would exercise some common sense and judgment.

That's when I decided to pack my stuff and leave the building. They can fire me later. For now, it self-preservation. I hate to see myself like those that were stuck at the WTC on 9/11. Sayonara.

Martha and Greg's Wedding

Today started just like most wedding days. Brian usually follows the guys and since they get dressed faster (sorry girls), Brian usually takes them anywhere the guys want even if it means bending the rules (ahem...the law) a little. The groom wanted to have their pictures taken by the Angels Stadium. While at the stadium an opportunity arose that could not be passed up....
They pretended to be another wedding party by telling the receptionist that they were there for the Wilhelm Wedding Party and they were let into the Stadium. Brian began shooting and it didn't take long for security to catch on their charade and kick them out.




Meanwhile Terry and I were at the Church taking pictures of the lovely Bride to be and her bridesmaids. I really love shooting natural lighting with the 50mm f1.2 and 85mm f1.2 lenses, it allows us to capture raw emotions without the distractions of our flashes going off. We were able to blurr out the distracting background and focused on our subject (the bride) because these lenses provide severe depth of field.


The time flew by fast and it was time for the ceremony, I can't believe how beautiful the Church was. We really had a great time and as always we are blessed that we had the opportunity to be apart of your special day.

It's My Birthday!

It's my Birthday today! Yea! I had a great morning with Lan and then I went to work. My Mom called me at around 10AM, then my sister Yvonne called around 12PM, and lastly my brother Simon called me. Now, that was a pleasant surprise. I have not seen nor heard from him since Christmas.

My Birthday dinner is postponed because Lan had to work late tonight. It's ok, I don't really mind. Her career is more important, and besides, we can always have dinner another night. I did however bought my own birthday cake so that I can bring it to Mom's house and celebrate with her. Lan surprised me by skipping work early and came home at 9PM to cut cake with me and my Mom. She even brought me a dozen of roses. :-)

I have to admit that I was not taking my birthday well considering I getting older and recently I realized that I may need bifocals or reading glasses. I had to remove my glasses and basically put to book right up against my nose to read it. I can always push the book further away, but recently I found my arm is not long enough. Of course, my barber had to tell me that my head is now filled with grey hair when I got my haircut yesterday. He's been cutting my hair for the past 10 years or so. He told me that he remembers the gradual change of my hair. Gee Thanks alot Steve!! I love the guy though. Vinh's haircuts is a great place to cut hair. It's only $12 with tips it's no more than $15. If you want an appointment cut is only $20.

When I got home from Mom's, I fell right to sleep at midnight right after my birthday ended. I guess I slept like a baby. :-)

Lunch with Edna and Sara!

Lunch with Edna and Sara! It was a nice surprise when I got a call from Edna to wish me a happy birthday. She also wanted to bring Sara out and have lunch with me for my birthday. When I arrived at th Greek Restaurant at the Farmer's Market, I was presented with 2 cup cakes made especially for me by Sara. What a wonderful surprise.

I happened to bring my Canon 1dn camera with my new 50mm 1.2 L lens. I photographed the pictures below. She such a "ham", but who can blame her when you're that cute. :-)

Dinner with my old Friends in NYC

Tonight, I organized a dinner with all my friends from my graduating class. I've been trying to do that via the email for the past 2 months. I'm a little disappointed that only a handful of people and it's the same people I hang around with attended the dinner. I guess not everyone is as nostalgic as me. I have to say that many had schedule conflicts but most didn't even reply my emails. Even Ben Kong who's now a pastor at a church in Queens which I Googled. Decidely find it too cumbersome to drive out to Manhattan to see old friends which he as not seen at least 15-20years. And me, I have not seen him since graudation which is 25 years! Anyways, I'm ok with it.

The other disappointing thing is that my favorite Italian restaurant in Little Italy SPQR is closed tonight for a private party. It's the same restaurant we went to as a big group prior to us going our separate ways 25 years ago. It's our last meeting as a group as a whole. I was hoping to have dinner there. But, I found a quaint little restaurant "Casa Bella" down the street. The food was just as delicious and I had a canoli for dessert.

Here's a picture of me and Jack. He married Chris after high school. He didn't go to Tech but I grew up with him. He used to be everyone's big bro. He used to be taller than me too. So, I'm not sure how I grew several inches taller than him. :-)

25th High School Reunion!

Today, I arrived in NYC at 12:30AM at JFK airport. I stayed at the American Airlines Admiral Club and cleaned up at their shower facilities. I then quickly took the Airport Shuttle to my Hotel in Queens. Since I couldn't check in yet, thankfully I was able to store my luggage temporarily at the Hotel. I quickly took the subway to Brooklyn Tech because it's my 25th High School Reunion! I was a little late but I made it to my graduation class slideshow presentation.



I was glad to found my best buddies from high school Ty and Robert. They saved a seat for me in the auditorium where we graduated 25 years ago. It brought back many memories as I walked up the block and into the entrance of the school. Those were the same steps I took 30 years ago when I walked in as a freshman.



After the assembly at the auditorium I found my closest friends that I still kept in touch with since our 20th reunion. We decided to tour the school, walk the hallways, and visit a classroom. The title picture above from left to right is Me, Tayen, Chris, Manuel, Ming, and Robert. Notice we left our signature and mark on the blackboard behind us. We each decided to sign the board and left it for the students coming in on Monday. :-)

We then went to lunch at the cafeteria on the 7th Floor. One of us decided to walk though memory lane walk up the stairs just like we did when we were young. Young is the operant word here because most of us were huffing and puffing after 3 flights of stairs. I was thoroughly tired from walking up those tiny little stairs. When we arrived to the cafeteria, we were very very winded. :-) I guess after 25 years, we're all pretty out of shape. I gotta hit the stairmaster when I get home.

Here's a photo of the enormous auditorium at Brooklyn Tech. I remember local college and universities used to rent our auditorium for their graduation commencement. It's a fisheye 15mm Canon L lens. This lens creates an even greater grandeur of the the auditorium.

Here's a picture of all of our feet on the Tech Shield on the first floor lobby of the school.

I know to most untrained eyes, this looks like a boring window. It's actually the window Tayen and I photographed through many graduations and stage performances such as the local ballet. It used to be so hot in there in middle of June where we only had one fan blowing in the tiny projector room.

Here's another photo of Tayen and I posing next to the window. By the way, Tayen and I have been friends since the 4th grade. That makes us 35 years of friendship which is very hard to fathom even me. It's all a blur to me. It's funny that he still looks that same except I grew several inches taller after high school because I used to be shorter than him. :-)

Here's the famous lathe that we all used to make a ball-peen hammer, plumb-bob in our metal workshop. I particularly like my metal shop because it was during my sophmore year 1980 when we had a subway strike. I actually carpooled with my Dad to Manhattan and then walked across the Brooklyn Bridge to school just so that I can attend my metal shop class. By the way, I got an A in all my projects in metal shop. :-D The other shop class was Foundry and we sadly found out that it's been scrapped permanently. Current students no longer require to take that class. It was kind of cool building mold and pouring molten metal to make our metal devices. Too bad it's now gone forever. On thing for sure change is a constant, it cannot be stopped.

After the tour of most of the school and to the GO store. I bought a couple of T-shirts that we used to wear for gym. We went back downstairs to the Gymnasium for a group photo.


Here's a picture of David Milman and me. We were pretty good friends when we were in high school. He was exceptionally short 4'10" and had cubby cheeks. In short he looked like he was 12 and many of the students picked on him. I on the other hand felt everyone was mean. By the way, like me he grew several inches taller after high school. It's funny how everyone grow in height at different time of one's life. He and I were the shortest people in our graduating class. About 5 years ago we hooked up via the Internet when I sought him out via Classmates.com. He now owns a computer consulting franchise that similar to Geek Squad. Doing extremely well. So here's to all the people who picked on him.

Below is a signed Class of '82 placard used for the group picture. My signature is on the bottom right hand corner with my Chinese name. This placard is now in the possession of David Milman. It's definitely a great memorabilia for our graduating class. I managed to photograph it right before he went home after the dinner banquet.

Finally here's a photo of me and the organizer. She used to be a cheerleader and we had nothing in common. In fact, we never spoke to each other even though she was in several of my class during my 4 years at Tech. She has not aged at all even though she's a mom, and over 40 years of age. That's the beauty of reunion is that after 25 years, we find kinship and camaraderie through a commonality which is Tech. Who would have thought 25 years later we would stand shoulder to shoulder for a photo.

It's been an amazing experience. And realistically, it will probably be my last reunion because no one really goes after 25 years.. perhaps 50th year but I would be pretty old... perhaps too old to travel to NYC. I wish more of my classmates were there. I really missed some of them and wonder what they are doing now. I definitely recommend anyone to go to their own reunion. It's definitely one of the highlights of my life to be there meeting old and new friends.

My flight to Washington DC's Cherry Blossoms Festival

I finally landed at Dulles in a tiny plane that didn't have any overhead space. The plane was so small that I sat in single row of seats on one side and 2 seats on the other. My carry on was too big and must be checked in at the gate. Fortunately, I didn't have to go through the baggage claim to get it back as they were ready for me when I walked off the plane. I quickly got my rental car and I was racing to Wash DC!! My heart was racing as I've been wanting to see Cherry-Blossoms in person and the fact that I almost missed that chance today due to a flight delay really added to the anxiousness and drama.

When I finally got there, I couldn't find parking space. Just my luck I barely missed several parking space because I was just a few seconds too late. Giving up all hopes, I drove out of the lot and parked somewhat illegally on the grass as many other cars were doing as well. It was a short walk to the Potomac but it's better than nothing as I was racing against time. If I lose the light then I would have flew her for nothing. Fortunately, there were plenty of day light still for great photo ops.

The photo above is one of many photos I took. I used my hand in the picture to get a scale in relations to the Cherry-Blossoms. You can see my long shadow from the side as it's close to dusk when I took this picture.

Here's short video as I walked through the park near the Potomac River. Surroundings include the Jefferson Memorial and in line of view of the Washington Memorial. It was somewhat windy as you can her in my video. Whenever it blows, the petals flew like snow and I felt like I was engulfed by the cherry blossoms. What a wonderous feeling as I can't really describe in words of the beauty of the cherry blossoms in this quantity. It's everywhere and it's beautiful as far as you can see as it lined the edge of the Potomac. I'm glad that I made it as it was explained to me that it's currently in full bloom that's why it's so beautiful. When in full bloom it would only last a day or two. Wind and rain will shorten the longevity of the bloom. In fact, the following day rained hard and the full bloom was shortened this year. Also, I was fortunate that it was a sunny blue sky kind of day and it really adds to the beauty of the cherry blossoms. This time of year, DC is usually cloudy and gloomy. The locals were saying that they would be happy that it wouldn't rain so that they can enjoy the beauty of the cherry-blossoms.

Cherry Blossom Festival 2007 from Terry Chan on Vimeo.

Cherry Blossoms Festival 2007 II from Terry Chan on Vimeo.

Red Eye Flight to Boston

I'm waiting at the terminal getting ready for my red eye flight to Boston. This year I decided to attend Photoshop World East / Boston because I am interested in the new Lightroom track which could increase my post production workflow.

Well, who would've thought that my Red-Eye flight is delayed for more than 2 hours. I got everything all planned. We were suppose to land around 7:30AM and I would check into the Admiral's Club to freshen up, shower, food etc. Since I can't check into the hotel this early, one day access of the Admiral's Club is the best way to clean up after a red-eye flight. And I will still have plenty of time to catch my flight to Washington DC with JetBlue at 10:30AM. This way, I'll have 6+ hours in DC to enjoy the Cherry Blossoms Festival, which something I wanted to see for quite some time (5 years in the making 2002).

Anyway, I arrived 15 minutes late for my JetBlue flight as I have to run out of one terminal from an AA flight and get into another terminal for JetBlue. It turned out that they took off without me. :-( Of course they wouldn't wait for me as they are different airlines. (I once missed a flight when it was the same airline...Continental. I had to stay overnight in Memphis) I was so angry because I thought I wasted my non-refundable flight money to Wash DC. I also lost my one day access to the Admiral's Club ($50) However, there is a later flight to Wash DC that I can take for an additional $50. I quickly took their offer and paid them immediately. The only drawback is that I won't land there until 1:30PM, and after I pickup the rental car, it would be around 2:30pm before I can get to the Potomac river. Oh well, it's better than nothing at all. I hope it's all worth it and I would get some awesome photo ops.

The drama didn't end here unfortunately. Now I have another 2 hours to kill so I decided to use my Admiral's Club access. However, I walked out of the AA terminal and security area. The Admiral's Club is back inside by the gate. Guess what, I no longer have a valid boarding pass to cross security! So, I went back to the AA ticket counter to explain my situation. the rude attendant bascially, I'm SOL because there's nothing she can do. I told her that there's always a way to get around "Nothing I Can Do's". Now, I'm really steaming because it was a malfunction of AA plane that delayed my flight. They caused my delay and forced me to pay an additional $50 for my JetBlue flight to DC. I'm not even faulting them on that and demand for the $50. They got the nerve to tell me that I'm SOL when it's all their fault! All I want is use the service that I paid for and the problem that they caused... it's worth $50!! It's non-refundable! So, I demand to speak to a supervisor and she said she can't get him for me. What!!! What is wrong with this woman. She said I couldn't produce proof that I paid for it. I showed her the email I got from AA Admiral's Club confirming my payment of $50 from my BB phone. She wouldn't even look at it. In the mean time, I was calling the Admiral's Club and ask them to speak to her. She wouldn't talk to them. Finally, the attendant next to her tried to help me and explain to her that I paid for this. She still didn't believe me because if I were in the Admiral's Club I would have a ID card. I told her that I don't get a card whe nit's only for one day, you stooopid @$%#^#!

Anyway, finally stormed off to get a supervisor and also the Admiral's Club also called the supervisor to get me a temporary boarding pass to get through security. In the mean time, I had to recheck my bags and everything else again. AArrrgh!!

Finally at the Admiral's Club, after a hot shower and cleaned myself up I was more calmed and relaxed. I have to say the Admiral's Club is worth every dime for travelers who traveled a long way and needed a place to clean up, relax and refresh. I definitely will use the Admiral's Club again next time I travel... minus the drama. :-)

Road Trip: WPPI with my partners

I got up at 5AM this morning after working until 11PM last night. Why so early? I had to drive to Allen's house by 6AM for a one day road trip to WPPI with him and Brian. Needless to say, the traffic was still horrible at this awful hour. There was a fatality at the exit I'm supposed to get off to Allen's house. Anyway, I was 30 minutes late and Brian was wondering where the heck were we?

We promptly drove as fast as possible to Brian's house after getting coffee for Allen. We finally took off around 7AM from Brian's house which is only about 2 1/2 hours to Vegas. After breakfast at Barstow, Brian's Volvo blew out the front right tire tearing up the entire tire, wheelwell, and his signal light. It was pretty strange that we didn't hear a loud pop at all. The reason is that his tires were so worned out that it had no tread and it was ready to go at any time.

We finally arrived to Las Vegas with his baby spare tire going at 60mph. A very nice gentleman by the name of TC who works for the NV Sheriff's Dept. kindly offer us a ride to Bally's from the tire place because it would take 2 hours to fix 2 tires. On the way, we discussed about having children and how you can't own anything nice any more. He drove us in a once nice/new limited edition 4 Runner but his kids trashed his truck. We offered to pay him for troubling him to drive us to Bally's but he refused. He wins the Good Samaritan Award in my book. Thanks TC!

Bose QC3 Quiet Comfort 3 Noise-Cancellig Headphones

I went to the Apple store at the Grove and purchased a very pricey ($349.95) Bose QC3 headphones. It has active noise cancelling technology which cuts out most if not all ambient noise. I can listen to my ipod clearly. It's really strange, when I flip the switch on because I feel like I'm deaf and cannot hear anything at all.

The active noise cancelling features creates opposing sound waves to cancel out the ambient noise. This is better than the passive noise cancelling because it only provide you with plugs the stick so tight to your ears that nothing can go out or in of your ear canal. It's not very comfortable. The QC3 on the other hand is very comfortable to my ears. It comes with a charger and a rechargeable battery because in order to active noise cancelling to work it needs power. It's charging right now and I can't wait to try them on after it's fully charged. I'm going to use it for our road trip to WPPI tomorrow to drown out the road noise, and especially my partners' 3.5 hours of yakking. :-)

USTA Mixed 8.0 Final Match

We played our final match today. As a team we won 2-1 against Claremont Tennis Club. Unfortunately, my parter Dianne and I lost in a close third set tie-breaker. The score was 6-7, 6-4, 1-0 (11-9). We actually had 2 match points but we couldn't convert it.

We had a great team and a great chance to win our section to compete at Sectionals. We were actually first place for about 4 weeks after we beat the #1 team which is now edging us out by a match. :-(

Darn it. I have to email the whole team with the bad news.

Eric Clapton Concert with Edna

Edna treated me to an Eric Clapton Concert at the Honda Center tonight. He's an awesome guitarist. He basically jammed for two and half hour straight.

It's the first activity that Edna and I did since her marriage/divorce from her husband. It was nice to have her company once again. Even though she's my cousin, she's more like my little sister. We used to share with each other everything. However, that came to a screeching halt when she got married. I was looking forward to spending time with her once again.

I had a great time Edna. Thanks.

I got a new lens today! Canon 50mm f1.2 L

I got a new lens today. My partner Allen picked it up for me. It's a Canon L lens, 50mm f1.2. This is such a sweet lens with L glass. At f1.2 the depth of field is phenomenal!! Can't wait to try it out. I'm so excited!

Silver Beaver Award: San Gabriel Valley Council Dinner

I was kinda anxious all day while at work thinking about tonight's Silver Beaver Award Dinner. I've been waiting for this moment for quite some time now... in fact 17 years! Since I didn't get a chance to earn my Eagle Scout Award as a child, I was determined to some day earn my ranks as an adult scouter. The Silver Beaver is the highest honor bestowed to a scouter in the Council level. I had the distinct honor of earning the District Award of Merit back in 1996... yes, 11 years ago! I was just a young pub learning the ropes of being a Scoutmaster. That was a pleasant surprise as I was not informed prior to attending the district dinner.

All week I've been running around trying to get my new uniform in order... with all the patches and knots all in place. Lan helped me get some of my ribbons from the LA Scout Shop which is temporarily relocated to the basement of her building at Squire Sanders and Dempsy.

I reserved 2 tables and prepaid it with my own money as I want to share this special moment with not only Lan, but my whole family. My mom and dad will attend my first scouting event and that is the biggest night of my scouting career. My business partners, Brian and Allen, were also there to support me and photograph the event. Chris also came but his girlfriend couldn't make it. Also, one of my scout from my Rose Parade Troop 2005 came as well. Incidentally, I included him in my montage photos.

Although, I wish they didn't dim the lights so much to show the PowerPoint slideshow, because it was difficult to photograph and videotape the actual ceremony of award presentation and wearing the ribbon. I was also mis-informed that I could only take one person on stage with me during the presentation. I of course chose my mom as she did more for me than anyone on this earth. Unfortunately, I had to do it without my father. Actually, he could've come up with us but he couldn't sit on stage.

Here are some of the photos of the even tonight. Thanks for sharing my special evening. It really means a lot to me to have all my family, business partners and friends there.

"Mighty" Mission Amigos District Dinner

I had the distinct pleasure, and honor in attending the Mission Amigos District Dinner tonight. :-)

I called Jack Pan, our District Executive, a couple of weeks ago, and he informed me that the dinner is now full and cannot add more people. I was a little disappointed because I was told by Ted Sakamoto, my mentor and friend, that I should attend because it will give good and positive PR to our district to attend the dinner and be recognized by everyone. It would also be nice for me to represent the district a positive light within the San Gabriel Valley Council. So, I told Jack, "not a problem", I was told that I should show up and said that I will just come during the beginning of the dinner to say hello to everyone. Besides I had another event to go to tonight because of Allen's Church is hosting their annual Valentine's Dance in Upland.